Combination sill and air duct



Nov. 29, 1949' J. M. HYDE 2,489,415

COMBINATION SILL AND AIR DUCT Filed July 1, 1946 2 Sheets-Sheet 1 Inventor JEAN/TA M. H YDE W I, W H Attorneys Nov. 29, 1949 J. M. HYDE 2,489,415

COMBINATION SILL AND AIR DUCT Filed July 1, 1946 2 Sheets-Sheet 2 J'u/w/m M HYDE By m H M ra/y Em Inventof Patented Nov. 29, 1949 UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE COMBINATION SILL AND AIR DUCT Juanita M. Hyde, Tampa, Fla.

Application July 1, 1946, Serial No. 680,726

2 Claims, 1

This invention relates to a ventilating means for buildings, and more particularly to a combination sill and air duct, adapted to admit fresh air into a room in an upward direction inwardly of a window sash or door, so as to pass upward over the inner surface of the window sash or door and avoid drafts against occupants of a room such as occurs by opening windows or providing openings through a wall leading directly into a room, and providing for the displacement of foul air and supply of fresh air to replace same.

Another object of the invention is to provide a combination sill and ventilator or air duct by which the volume of air entering a building or room may be controlled, without interfering with the provision of a flat supporting surface at the inside of the sill, the air entering from under a projecting outer portion of the sill, so as to eliminate the entrance of rainwater or dust settling thereon, and by screening said opening at the inlet, under the sill, eliminating the hazards from vermin, mosquitoes, snakes, flies, etc.

Another object of the invention is to provide a sill having a hollow chamber with a projecting outer ledge and a bottom member, together with a-controlled damper in the inner portion of the sill on the inside of the window sash or door, to control the volume of air entering and to direct the same upwardly for efficient ventilation, and also providing means for allowing of the entrance of makeup air downwardly to a point near the floor, in ventilating a room, either by cooling or heating the same under the action of forced ventilation in causing the circulation of air as a cooling or heating medium, and rendering the same under control at all times.

Another object of the invention is to admit the air at the inside and bottom of a window sash or door, so as to counteract heat radiation at its source, to provide more effective cooling comfort, as well as healthier living conditions and greater heating efficiency, with complete freedom from drafts at less cost than possible with systems requiring air ducts using individual wall openings or openings placed at the sides, top or bottom of the window or door openings, and allowing the air to enter in a path. clear of the occupants of the room or rooms, in the occupancy areas, with greater velocities and smaller ducts than where the air spills into the room with the resultant draft hazards of high velocity, and requiring but one minimum size opening properly placed at the window frame, aswell as providing a stronger wall construction due to the necessity of but one air entrance opening serving bothfor sill, win- 2 dow and duct, as well as permitting screening thereof to exclude insects and dirt, undisturbed in case of blackouts, and proper control of the supply of fresh makeup air for the heating system delivered at the most efiicient point without additional cost or additional openings in the outer wall of the room or building without marring or interfering with the outside or inside appearance of the sill or building wall from the presently accepted designs.

Other objects and advantages reside in the details of construction and operation as more fully hereinafter described and claimed, reference being had to the accompanying drawings forming part hereof, wherein like reference numerals refer to like parts throughout, and in which-- Figure 1 is an outside elevation showing the invention applied to a wall opening of a buildin represented as a window opening, although capable of application to any form of wall opening, whether a window louver or a door,

Figure 2 is a fragmentary elevation taken on the plane of the line 2-2 of Figure 1 looking upwardly,

Figure 3 is a vertical sectional view taken on the line 3--3 of Figure 1,

Figure 4 is a fragmentary inside elevation showing the invention applied and partly broken away, and

Figure 5 is a fragmentary horizontal sectional plan view with the combination sill and air duct applied as in the other figures.

Referring to the drawings in detail, in which like reference characters designate corresponding parts throughout the several views, [0 designates a suitable wall of any desired construction, such as building block, frame, concrete, or tile 1 I, withmortar joints l2, and arranged upon a suitable foundation. An opening I3 is provided in the wall, and may be a window, louver, or a door opening, with an upper wall structure [4 above the same. As shown, the opening is provided with a frame l5 including frame sides, of which the portion [4 may form a top member or header, while a bottom member it also forms the bottom of a sill l1, and may be of wood, plastic, or metal, as desired. The window or door is designated at [8, and may be a sash frame, with a suitable panel, such as [9, of glass or otherwise. While the window may be fixed, so as not to move or open, it is to be understood that the window or door may be slidable, or hinged to swing horizontally or vertically to open or close, and of course, in the case of a door, obviously the same would be mounted on vertical hinges. to swing 3 horizontally. Obviously, either the window, louver or door may be considered as a closure in a wall opening, irrespectiv of the opening and closing feature thereof. The sill I7 is formed of sheet metal or other material of suitable character, and forms a hollow chamber therein over and with the bottom member [6, shaped to provide an inner horizontal sill portion adapted to be closed. by a damper plate or louver 20. The sill proper has a vertical portion or stop 21 and is extended inwardly horizontally, as indicated at 22, to form an adjustable support for the damper or louver 20. From the depending shoulder or stop 2 I the outer sill 23 slopes downwardly in an outward direction and overhangs the wall H1, in spaced relation to the outer surface of the latter with a depending portion 24 terminating in an inwardly extending shoulder or flange 25 at the bottom edge thereof in spaced relation to the front of the wall at the bottom member 16 of the sill which forms a chamber 26 between the same and the-top member of the sill; A suitable opengrid, consisting of foraminous material or wire screen 21 is supported upon the flange 25 and may be secured thereto, as indicated at 21', at its outer'edge so as to extend inwardl horizontally and then in front of the bottom member l6; as indicated at 28, where it may be-secured by-a horizontal strip or face plate 29, as indicated at 30, or by other suitable means. Any number of Vertical strength-giving members in the form of stiffeners, spacers or partitions 3! may be provided in the chamber 26 between the bottom member I6 and the top portion of the sill i! so as to give support thereto. As shown, the damper. plate or louver 2|! is provided: with a depending arcuate ratchet or other suitable member Secont acting a fixed lug M1 and manipulated by a grip-- ping portion orhead 4| at the top, so as to adjust the angle ofinclination and degree'of opening thereof according to the quantity of air which it is desired to admit through the circuit or path up through the screen 2"! and then inwardlyand' upwardly through the openin at the inner side of the sill inthe manner clearly shown by the arrows in Figure 3 of the drawings. Also, the airmay pass downwardly through the space 32 between outer wall member Ill andinner wall: member 33 by providing an opening 42 in. the latter in which is set a-rotatable or other damper 43 of any desirableconstruction, shownhaving a perforated plate or spider 44 over which the plate 43 is rotatably mounted, as indicated. at 45, and provided with a. handle or knob by which the, plate may be turned so that the entranceof fresh air may be provided ator near the floor for use in makeup purposes when using a heating syS tern. This is in direct contrast to the entrance of fresh air through openings provided inthe. wall,- or by opening the window or door, tocause drafts against the occupants of the room, which. is entirely eliminated by the present invention.

It-willithus be seen that I have provided a very desirable combination sill and air duct, and by forming'the sill in the manner. described, of hollow. construction, the necessary strength is provided to support th window sash or door threshold to rest thereon, aswell as toform the top of the-air duct inconnection with the bottom mem-. ber forming the internal chamber 26 through which air isadmitted to the room through the screened opening at the projected outer portion or'ledge of the sill extending outwardly from theouter face of the wall structure I 0 of the building. The design of the air duct is such that outside- 4 air for summer cooling is drawn through it by means of a fan via a weather-protected, screened inlet, opening to and through a damper or louver properly controlling the outlet, so that by placing the same inside of the window or door within the room, the entering air travels inwardly and upwardly over the sun-exposed surface of the window or door, so as to counteract heat radiation at the, source Also, the air enters the room in an upward direction deflected by the inclined damper, which forms a baflie and directs the air upwardly inside of the window and along the same, as well as toward the top of a room to prevent drafts on the occupants which result from openings extending directly into a room horizontally,

or by opening a window or door. Also, by opening; the ventilator 42, the air may pass downwardly through the vent or space 32 from the chamber 26 through an opening in member 16, as indicated at 49, communicating with the space 32, as shown in Figure 3 of the drawings, so asto permit the entrance of outside air required for makeup purposes for winter heating, flowing by fan-induced suction through the sill, then down ward and through the air space separating the outer and inner building walls and into the room at or near the floor level, where it diffuses with the heated air circulation. It-should also be notedthat the damper for controlling the volume of in-- coming, cooling air is made up as ahinged shell, which, in closed position, forms part of the inner member of the sill at the top, and, in a raised'position, acts as a deflector to forcethepathof the incoming air against the window or door glass and upwardly intothe room, which-provides morecffectivecooling comfort, healthier living conditions, and complete freedom from drafts at less cost than possible with systems requiring air ducts using individual wall openings or openings placed-at thesides, top, or bottorn'of the window or-dooropenings; Also,- since the air travels in a path clear of theoccupants'of'the room, greater velocitiesand'smaller ducts are permissiblethan where the air entering the room spills directly into theroom with the resultant draft hazards with high velocities. Thus, it ispossible to use a smaller size entrance opening for the air, the opening being ofminimum size and properly placed in'thewindowordoor sill, so that a stronger wallconstruction is obtained dueto one opening serving for both window opening and duct; The screened inletopening under the sill eliminates passage-of vermin,- mosquitoes, snakes and? flies, and prevents the entrance of rainwater; dust and dirt, etc. Also, the'outsideappearanceis not changed from the present accepted designs.

While in the foregoing there has been shown and described the preferred embodiment of this invention, it is tobe understood that minor changes in'the-details-of construction and combination and arrangement of parts may be resorted towithout departing from thespirit and scope of the invention as claimed.

Elimination of balanced or hinged sash with protectivesc-reens and required hardware assures; a material saving in the low-cost housing programpresently sponsored bythe Federal Government.

What I claimis:

1'. In combination with a building wall having an opening for a closure and composed of an outer wall-member and an inner'wall member extending above said outer wall member, a closureframe fitted in said opening and including side and bottom frame members, a sill comprising a single sheet extending from side to side of thelower portion of the frame over and in spaced relation to the bottom frame member, said sheet being shaped to provide a horizontal inner edge portion spaced from the inner wall member, an outwardly inclined portion projecting outwardly beyond the outer wall member, a vertical closure stop portion connecting said inner edge and inclined portions, and a depending outer edge portion terminating in an inwardly extending bottom flange spaced from the outer edge of said bottom frame member, a horizontal grid connecting said bottom flange to the outer edge of said bottom frame member and spanning the space between said bottom flange and said bottom frame member, an adjustable damper plate hinged to the inner wall member and spanning the space between the upper edge of said inner wall member and the inner edge portion of said sheet, and vertical partitions between said sheet and said bottom frame member.

2. The construction defined in claim 1, wherein 6 said inner wall member is spaced from the outer wall member and has an opening below and in a vertical plane between the ends of said sill, and a damper set in the last-named opening.

J UAN'ITA M. HYDE.

REFERENCES CITED The following references are of record in the file of this patent:

UNITED STATES PATENTS Number Name Date 327,414 Scharnweber Sept. 29, 1885 1,136,785 Fair Apr. 20, 1915 1,308,236 Glass July 1, 1919 1,445,067 Brooks Feb. 13, 1923 1,553,507 Campbell Sept. 15, 1925 1,643,554 Glass Sept. 27, 1927 1,976,032 Morton Oct. 9, 1934 1,977,248 Space Oct. 16, 1934 

